Worth the Risk (Carolina Rebels 5)

“And you’re invited,” Sydney tells me.

“She was thinking about one day next week,” Deanna adds.

“Just let me know when and I’ll be there.”

“Here they come!” Jackson shouts with excitement as the guys return for the next period.

Bree falls asleep, totally missing the action on the ice. Sydney’s husband, Ian, gets into a fight that adds a whole new level of intensity to the raucous crowd. The Kessy twins break away and fly down the ice with only one of their opponents in their way as he skates backward about midway between them. He doesn’t seem like he knows what they will do, but one of them, I can’t tell which, ends up with the puck and crashes the net, the puck trickling past the goalie and over the line.

Thankfully, Jackson slipped off my lap in anticipation, so his celebration doesn’t wake Bree. The score is now three to zero. The Rebels hold that score until the time runs out. Jackson can’t stop smiling over the victory. The guys are leaving tonight for Tampa Bay, so we head on home. Henry drove separately to the game, so it’s just us.

I walk into the house, but I frown when I see the alarm panel blinking. Looks like I wasn’t paying enough attention when we left and I set the silent alarm instead. All of a sudden, two things happen.

Footsteps bound from upstairs, rushing toward the front door, and police sirens wail nearby.

I scream at the sight of the three intruders, pulling Jackson closer to me by his shirt. They yank open the front door and keep running. My feet cement into place, even as Jackson looks up to me and asks me a question I don’t quite comprehend. Even when two officers come in, I can’t seem to move.

“Ma’am, do you live here?” one of them asks.

I nod.

“Is anyone else in the house?”

“I...I don’t know. Three guys just ran downstairs and out the front door.”

One of the officers talks into the walkie talkie on his shoulder and the other heads upstairs, presumably to make sure we’re alone in the house. The guy that stays asks me what happened but my nerves are so shot to hell, my hands tremble, and my legs feel weak. I walk over to the table and sit down with Jackson balancing on one thigh and Bree on the other, my arms firmly around them both.

“Can I call someone first?” I ask. Elias isn’t here, I can’t stay in this house alone tonight, and I need some support. There’s only one person I can think to call.

Henry.

There are voicemails on my phone when we land, and assuming they are from Raelynn, I attempt to videochat with her the moment I’m in the hotel room. It’s late. Late enough that I’m thrown off and surprised when Jackson’s face appears on my screen instead of hers.

“Hey, J-man. What are you still doing up?”

“Momma hasn’t told me to go to bed yet.”

Okay, that’s weird. “Where is your mom? I want to talk to her.”

Jackson stands, the view changing to his feet as he walks, and it seems as if he lifts the phone because I’m suddenly hit with another view. Of Raelynn and Henry hugging. Henry looks as if he’s holding on as tightly as possible because Raelynn might slip through his fingertips at any moment. What the hell is he doing at my house at this hour? And why are they hugging? Even though I can’t see Raelynn’s face, I can see some of her arms and she looks to be holding onto him just as tightly.

“Momma, it’s EJ.”

Raelynn whirls around. “Oh, thank goodness!” Why does she look so relieved? Doesn’t she realize I caught her red-handed? I’m not sure what exactly I caught her doing, but it feels like I caught her. She takes the phone from Jackson. “Someone broke into the house, Elias. They were here when we got home.”

Her lips move, but my entire world stops. They were in danger? “Is Bree okay?” I blurt out, interrupting her.

“Yes. We’re all fine.” She repeats what happened, that they ran soon after she walked into the kitchen door from the garage. That the police arrived right after. They found the guys before they could escape in their car. Nothing was taken from the house, but some repairs need to be made to my front door. “I didn’t want to stay alone, so I asked Henry to come over,” she further explains. “He’s sleeping in my room, so I’ll be taking over yours.” She gives me a little smile.

“That’s fine.” But a new uneasiness settles over me. I’m glad Henry is there, especially if it makes her feel safer, but I should be the one there with her. And there’s something about them being together now that bothers me. I can’t put my finger on it just yet. “Can I see Bree?” I ask because I honestly want to see for myself that my princess is unharmed and asleep in her crib, but I also want her away from Henry for a few minutes.

“Of course.” To Jackson, she says, “Come on, baby. It’s way past your bedtime too. Your dad will tuck you in while EJ checks in on Bree.” Nothing else is said to me until she’s in Bree’s room. “I wish you were here, Elias,” she whispers as she adjusts the phone so I can see my little princess peacefully sleeping.

“Me too,” I whisper back.

“Is it okay if Henry stays until you get back?” She switches the phone back to herself and slips out of the room and into my bedroom. “I don’t want to face being by myself at night just yet, especially until the door is fully fixed. But if you don’t want him here...” Her voice trails off. “I could call Deanna, maybe? I didn’t think about her.” She frowns. “Or any of the other girls.”

“It’s fine, Raelynn.” Damn it, why does that feel like a lie?